A performer unfurled a banner showing the Sudanese and Palestinian flags and the words “Sudan” and “Gaza” during Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans on Sunday.
The performer, who was not immediately identified, was detained on the field and will be barred from all NFL stadiums for the rest of his life, the NFL said in a statement. The football organization and Roc Nation, which produced the halftime show, said the flag had not been part of any plan or rehearsal.
“The individual hid the item on his possession and unveiled it late in the show,” the NFL said. “No one involved with the production was aware of the individual’s intent.”
The protester first showed the banner while standing on the hood of a Buick Grand National GNX while Lamar sang “Not Like Us,” a diss track targeting the Jewish rapper Drake. He then jumped off the car and ran on the field for about 20 seconds before being tackled by security.
The flag represented the only visible indication of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war at the game, during which the Philadelphia Eagles handily defeated the Kansas City Chiefs. It also represented an unusual public display of protest in support of Sudan, where two years of civil war have led to a humanitarian crisis including famine, sexual violence, collapse of health care systems and mass displacement. Tens of thousands have been killed in the conflict, which the outgoing Biden administration labeled a genocide last month.
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